What He Wanted
by Kraken Guard
Summary: One of the most memorable things about Disney are their villains, save for one particular fiend. The Horned King loathes being the one always overshadowed by the others and left in the shadows by himself, until a dark fairy joins him for a "friendly chat" in the darkness. Maleficent X Horned King(Possible Romance)
1. The Forgotten One

The purpose of all this? The author simply wants to see more of the Horned King and Maleficent, because, for reasons unknown, she REALLY loves the two. X3

The Kraken Guard is highly disappointed in the lack of The Black Cauldron, so she writes fanfiction.

Reviews are welcome, and if you spot a goof-up or typo, let the Kraken Guard know, so that she can go back to edit.

* * *

It had been twenty-seven years since the Horned King was first introduced to the villains of Disney. Most of the Horned King's predecessors had complimented him, saying that he would be an excellent edition to the Disney Villains family, as they had called themselves.

"_You are quite possibly the scariest villain since Chernabog and Maleficent,_" they had told him. While he was not sure what to think of their words at the time, the Horned King eventually learned that it was a complimentary statement.

And yet, here he was. The year, 2012, now going onto 2013. It had been twenty-seven years since the Horned King was introduced to his family. Over the course of those twenty-seven years, the Horned King was ostracized by his fellow fiends.

_The Black Cauldron, the 25th film in the Animated Canon, was an ambitious step for the Walt Disney Animation Studio. They had wanted to start a new era that would be geared more toward an older audience._

_However, once the film finally hit the big screen, it proceeded to bomb at the theaters. If you were to ask a character or viewer why, their responses would vary: Some would say that the film was "too dark and scary," while others would say that "it differed too far from the original books by Lloyd Alexander." There were even those who said that the characters themselves were dull and lacked in characterization._

_Either way, for whatever reason, the film had left the studio overboard, until a little mermaid swam along and helped them back to shore. The mantle of shame was eventually passed on over onto number 45, Home on the Range, but that did not help The Black Cauldron much, as far as popularity. Even to this day, The Black Cauldron is held in a high disregard, and the rest is history._

_As the years flew by, more films were introduced to the canon, and with them came more characters. But with each new film, The Black Cauldron fell deeper into the shadows of obscurity. Hero, Princess and Villain alike were welcomed by the other characters of the canon, while the characters of The Black Cauldron faded from memory._

_No one remembered Princess Eilonwy, and no one gave much thought to Taran, the protagonist of the film. For what all it was worth, many consider the lovable(if somewhat cowardly) Gurgi to be a relatively memorable character, as well as the Horned King himself, who served as the main antagonist of the film. But even then, they were all overshadowed by the other characters._

_Taran, Eilonwy, Fflewddur and the rest of them? They were just there among the rest of the characters. Taran never saved the princess from an evil vizier. And, aside from being visually terrifying, the audience witnessed very little activity from the Horned King. He wanted the Black Cauldron, the titular artifact of the film, to rule the world. But the antagonist never placed any curses on the princess, nor did he transform himself into a fire-breathing dragon._

_No. Compared to the rest of the characters in the Animated Canon, characters of The Black Cauldron were viewed as having little importance, if any. They were just a smear. And the villains were quite open with reminding the Horned King of the films failure._

_"You were just an experiment,_" they had now started to tell him. "_A failed experiment. You failed to garner any kind of recognition. No one will remember you, and if they do, they will only remember you as being a failure._"

"_You are nothing more then an embarrassment. A disgrace._"

That was how it had been for the past twenty-seven years. While the heroes and heroines might not have been so cruel to the characters from The Black Cauldron, the villains were merciless.

The Horned King was bitter. Technically, the character was one who was unconcerned as to what others thought of him. He was well aware of the crimes he had committed. The lengths to which he would go to achieve his goal were great and terrible, but finding the Black Cauldron was his ambition. He would not give up his quest until he found and obtained that dreaded crochan.

That was how he was on-screen. Off-screen, the characters were very much like themselves portrayed on-screen. Aladdin was exactly like himself off-screen as he was on-screen. The Tremaines? They were exactly the same. Unfortunately enough.

Surprisingly, there have been instances where Aurora would have friendly conversations with Maleficent herself, much to the dismay of Philip and the three good fairies, Flora, Fauna and Merryweather.

The Horned King? Off-screen, he longed for the recognition he never had. He wanted to be one of the memorable villains, like Maleficent, Frollo, Chernabog and the others. But even he knew that he could never go back to fix whatever went wrong. Even the Sands of Time could not allow him that chance.

On-screen and off-screen, the Horned King was a formidable villain, scarce to showing any form of outward emotion. But the years weighed heavily on his shoulders, as well as the others from the film he originated from.

It tore him apart. The supposed family he was in did nothing but look down and despise him. As much as he loathed Taran, even off-screen, he could not help but to stand and defend the lad from the arachnid-like pirate, Scroop, one day.

"_You're just a failure. A mistake that never should have happened._"

"_What would that spider know?_" The horned lich mused to himself. It wasn't as though Treasure Planet itself was that successful. As of 2011, it has become Disney's biggest lost, financially.

But it did not matter. The Black Cauldron was still the film that failed. And that would never change. That would never change, no matter how the characters wished for it, and it tore the Horned King apart.

It tore him apart. The Horned King hated it. He hated every one of the villains. The Horned King felt that each and every one of them were stealing away the recognition he thought he himself deserved.

The Horned King hated being left behind. He hated being the forgotten one. But he knew that he could not correct whatever mistakes were made that made The Black Cauldron so loathed.

"_Who am I fooling?_" The Horned King thought quietly to himself, slowly ascending the old stairs that lead to his dark chambers. "_It is beyond hope. No matter what we do, or how hard we try, we can not, nor could we ever surmount to anything. It was all an experiment gone wrong, and that is all we could ever be._"

It irritated the lich when he heard himself speak these words. But he had become convinced that it was the truth. He could never be one of the memorable villains, like Maleficent. He was just there to fill in an empty gap that was so easily overlooked. No one would pay heed to him. He was the forgotten one, and he would always remain as such.

"Sire?"

The Horned King stopped, standing mere inches from the door. The skeletal king recognized the trembling voice as that of the Creeper, a small, green goblin that served as one of the Horned King's various minions.

Not to be confused with the huntsman. The Creeper is weak and frail, but the goblin was not entirely without use. In fact, the Creeper had a specialty toward taming certain creatures, such as the winged, bird-like Gwythaints.

However, while the Creeper is not without use, the Horned King seldom shows gratitude, and often strangles his minion when the lich-king's plans go awry. Both on-screen and off-screen, the goblin holds a terrible fear toward his master.

"Sire, forgive me, but..." The goblin spoke in stutters, cautiously inching his way toward the horned lich. "There is someone here. She said she wanted to talk with you," said the goblin, frightful that the Horned King would punish him. For whatever reason.

Glancing over his shoulder, the horned lich raised his brow at the Creeper's words. "And my huntsman?" The lich inquired, curious to know why there was no mention as to what actions had been taken. Judging by the way the goblin recoiled and trembled, the Horned King assumed that there were none.

"Please, sire! It's not my fault!" The goblin all but cried out in fear, bowing before the terrible, undead creature. "We could not take any actions, for fear that she would do great harm! Or- Or worse!"

The Horned King's brows furrowed as the goblin got caught on his own stammers. Try as he could, the Creeper could not speak the words on his mind. Having lost his patience with the goblin, the skeletal king turned and made his way down, walking over the Creeper in the process and leaving the goblin to give out a faint, frightful yelp in the process.

The hallways of the old castle were scarce of life, save for the occasional rat scurrying across the floor and vanishing into the shadows. The light of the torches waned as the lich made his way toward the throne room, accompanied by a chilling aura of foreboding that nearly snuffed out the flames.

Was the Horned King unaware of who his unexpected visitor was? In truth, the lich had an idea. But why she would visit him, of all villains, the Horned King did not know. They had seen each other, but they never interacted with one another. Not for many years, at least.

At last, the lich arrived at the throne room. There in the center she stood, and the Horned King found himself captivated by her magnificence. Upon sensing his presence, the dark fairy turned and smiled, bowing politely to the Horned King as the two approached one another.

"_Maleficent._"


	2. The Visitor

"It has been a long time, my friend."

"_My friend._" Those words lingered on the Horned King's minds for several moments.

The Villains scarcely payed the Horned King any visit. Not since The Black Cauldron failed to garner any form of recognition. Truth be told, the skeletal king was quite surprised to see Maleficent at his domain.

"Have you more important fiends to pay visit to?" Inquired the Horned King, his voice dead and monotone as he spoke. "I do not see what business you would have here, of all places. There is nothing here that would be of interest, especially to you. There are obviously others, so why not pay visit to them, instead?"

"Is my presence unwelcome?" The fairy inquired in response, her brows furrowing to form an offended frown. "I see. Well, in that case, I'd best be on my way."

The lich frowned, recalling the time when Maleficent first made her appearance; Uninvited she came to the king and queen, cursing their newborn baby and condemning the child to death.

People nowadays consider fairies as creatures that grant wishes and aid others in the achievement of happy endings. In truth, fairies were malicious creatures that found enjoyment in the misfortune of others. Most of them were mischief makers and pranksters, but Maleficent was the worst of them all, being the self proclaimed Mistress of all Evil. So terrible was she, that the rest of the fairies abandoned her in the hopes that they could continue on their trouble-making and pranking without fear and worry that Maleficent - Originally named Carabosse, - Would eventually turn on them.

As the fairy turned to leave, the Horned King stepped forward.

"I made no suggestions that your presence is unwelcome," started the lich. "I was merely stating that it was a surprise. I did not expect any visitors. Especially you."

The fairy turned and arched her brow upon hearing the words of the skeletal king.

"Well, if that is the case," started the fairy. "You should show more appreciation. You hardly ever have any visitors."

The skeletal king stared at the fairy with a frown. It was not as though she was unwelcome. In fact, the Horned King appreciated the visit from the Mistress of all Evil herself. But the king was having problems understanding why she would pay visit to him. Especially when he was so obscure, compared to the other villains.

So, the horned lich was left to wonder: _Why did she come?_

"I am not without gratitude," started the skeletal king. "You are welcome here."

At these words, the fairy turned to face the Horned King once again, now with a smile gracing her lips.

Let it not be said that the Horned King was oblivious as to who Maleficent was. The fairy was prideful. The lich-king was knowledgeable enough to know that Maleficent was an entity that demanded high respect. King Stefan and Queen Leah had the unfortunate fate of learning for themselves that a lack of invitation would not go unnoticed by the dark fairy.

Every character knew that.

Maleficent was not one to tolerate being excluded from parties, or being shown the door. But was the Horned King welcoming Maleficent because he knew this? In truth, that was not the reason for his welcoming of the dark fairy. He was glad to have the fairy visit him, but he was uncertain about why. Maleficent was not one to normally visit someone for a mere chat.

"Be there anything I can do to make her ladyship comfortable?" Inquired the Horned King.

"Not at this moment," Maleficent responded.

"Then," started the Horned King, his hands clasped together behind his back as he walked around the fairy in slow steps. "May I inquire as to what brought you to this world of Prydain? Why did you came here?"

That was when the Horned King came to a halt before the dark fairy, locking his gaze onto hers. No matter how hard he tried, Maleficent's eyes were unreadable, so the lich could not fathom what could be on her mind.

"Your majesty, is it of great importance?" The fairy responded with a kind smile - Kindly, albeit accompanied with a slight hint of maliciousness. Such was to be expected from the Mistress of all Evil, making her all the more mysterious.

As for Maleficent's question, the Horned King could only frown upon hearing the fairies words. In truth, it was important. Of course, it was not a question revolving around life or death. But he wanted to know why she chose to visit him, of all villains, when there were others.

But alas. Before the Horned King had the chance to inquire further about the fairies presence, Maleficent had already started to wander off.

* * *

_"So, I am number Twenty-Five, correct?" Inquired the Horned King, glancing over at the man steering the coach. In one hand, the man in red held a whip for urging the animals onward. In the other, he held the reigns to the mules that pulled the coach._

"Well, not really. You're just from the Twenty-Fifth film in the canon. As far as we villains go, I'd say you're about…"

The Horned King arched his brow at the man in red, who now held up his hands to count his fingers.

The Coachman(as he was called) was going over the various evil-doers that have been introduced over the years, but it was difficult for him to keep track of so many villains. Especially when there were more then one villain in certain films. Pinocchio, the second film in the animated canon, was one such an example, having such villains like Honest John, Gideon, Stromboli, Monstro, and the Coachman himself.

To add further complication, the Coachman had only eight fingers; four digits on each hand.

"Can't say I remember the exact amount," said the Coachman with a shrug of his shoulders. "But obviously, you're the most recent fiend we've 'ad."

"You have four fingers on each hand."

The Coachman stared at the horned lich for a moment, clueless as to what the lich was talking about, only to realize…

"Oh! this 'ere?" The Coachmen started with a laugh, holding up a gloved hand. "Quite observant, I'll give you that much. A possible mistake on me an'maters part… Or is it?"

The Coachman flashed the Horned King a wicked smirk. A smirk that gave way to a sort of maliciousness to his otherwise kindly appearance(Though truth-be-told, the Horned King could not see anything overly kindly about the Coachman, but if the children were so easily fooled by the old man's appearance).

With a loud crack of his whip, the Coachman urged the mules onward. Off in the distance, the Horned King took note of a particular mountain surrounded by an aura of foreboding.

"You'll be meetin' with eleven of your fellow fiends once we make our way to Bald Mountain, though you still 'ave yet to meet with the others."

"Who will I be meeting with?" Inquired the Horned King.

"Well, first off," started the Coachman, "You'll be meetin' with the Queen. You'll also be meetin' with my fellow mates, Honest John and Gideon. There is also Chernabog 'imself, and the three Tremaines. The Queen of Hearts, Cap'n James Hook, Maleficent 'an Shere Khan."

"Aren't there more?"

"Yes, but they're probably off on their own business at the time. Don't worry, you'll be meetin' with them soon," stated the Coachman. Another loud 'crack' followed, echoing in the air as he urged the mules to press onward.

The road to the top of the mountain was long and treacherous. The mules dragging the coach now had to go in a slower and steadier pace. The journey was perilous. Any accidents and the whole coach could be brought tumbling down.

But the Coachman was cautious. As they neared the top, the mules became more hesitant, but the sting of his whip urged them forward. Onward they went, until they at last arrived at their destination.

As the Horned King stepped off from the coach, a chilling voice caught his attention.

"You are late," A deep, rumbling voice spoke out, and it was at that moment when the Horned King saw it; A humongous, winged, figure, at the top of the mountain. It's muscular arms crossed over it's chest as it stared down at the two with eyes that shone like two moons on a cold, Halloween night.

"My apologies, mate," the Coachman started with an apologetic tip of his hat to the great demon. "But you know how these stubborn animals get." The Coachman then casts his eye on the mules, huddled together and trembling from the sight of the gigantic creature.

"A bunch a' pansy asses, if I do say so myself." The Coachman frowned at the cowardly mules, before turning to the demon before them. "This ol' chap that I bring with me is the Horned King."

"Horned King," the demonic entity repeated, now scratching his chin in thought as he examined the horned lich below him. Then, with a frightening smile, the demon reached his hand down and carefully picked the skeletal lich up, holding him in the palm of his gigantic hand.

"You look like an interesting one. I am Chernabog, the father of evil, and master of the night."

The Horned King was without fear. The skeletal lich bowed to the great demon and was lowered back down onto the ground.

"The other fiends are dying to meet you. Make your way down through that cave to meet your acquaintances."

"It shall be done," said the Horned King. Turning back to the Coachman, the lich made a motion with his hand toward the Coachman. "Will you be joining me?"

"In a minute, let me just tie this bit of rope 'ere!" The Coachman piped in response. Soon enough, the man came to the lich's side and led the Horned King down to the depths of Bald Mountain.


End file.
